Tweet This

Conventional wisdom once told us that margarine was a healthy butter substitute, tanned skin was a sign of health, and our favorite fashion fads were awesome, perennial, and would never be embarrassing. But, have you looked through your middle or high school yearbook lately?

Unfortunately, conventional wisdom is often wrong, especially in the workplace. A lot of well-intentioned business and leadership advice circulates offices and cubicles. While some of it is sound, much of it is not only off the mark, but has actually been disproven. Here are 6 pieces of workplace wisdom that research has proven dead wrong. You’ve heard these mantras—you may even still believe them—but read the research and learn why they just don’t hold true in today’s business world.

Image: Shutterstock.com

1. 8-hour workdays lead to productivity.

Recently, a town in Sweden decided to implement a strict 6-hour workday for everyone. Why? Because employees are actually more productive when they work shorter days. Using a time-tracking productivity app called DeskTime, the Draugiem Group conducted an experiment to understand the habits of the most productive employees. Surprisingly, the employees with the highest productivity didn’t work longer hours than their counterpoints. They didn’t even work full eight-hour days. Instead, the most productive employees took a 17-minute break for every 52 minutes of work. Built in breaks and shorter workdays actually enable employees to be their most productive.

2. Money is the best motivation.

Will employees produce better results and be happier if you pay them more? Research gives a resounding no. A global Boston Consulting Group study of over 200,000 employees found that an attractive salary is only the #8 consideration for how happy employees are at work. At the top of the list are feeling appreciated for their work, good relationships with colleagues, and a good work/life balance. And, a recent study by the O.C. Tanner Institute and The Cicero Group reveals that money isn’t what motivates employees to do great work, either. When asked what motivates them, only 7% of participants responded by saying a salary increase. More than 5x that amount responded by saying, “recognize me.” Bottom line: money doesn’t buy happiness or great results.

3. Jump right in, put your head down, and get it done.

If this is how you think you should approach new work projects, you’re not alone. The jump in headfirst mentality is prevalent among driven students and professionals alike. But it’s not a habit that produces great work. Research shows that great work comes from pausing to think before a project, asking the right questions, and taking the time to tweak and adjust your work until it makes a difference people love. That’s the exact opposite of this in-and-out, one-and-done mentality. Instead of quality work, this mantra leads to rushed outcomes, or worse: untapped potential that hasn’t been discovered. The next time a new assignment hits your desk, take the Great Work Challenge and catapult your efforts and results from good to great.

4. High achievers make great managers.

There’s a definite difference between managing and leading. Turns out, there’s also sometimes a mismatch between high performers and fantastic managers. While many managers earn their title by being highly productive or knowledgeable about their craft, being a great manager means being effective at discovering unique skills in others, and then capitalizing on those skills. Research on the “Value of Bosses” by Stanton, Shaw, and Lazear found that bosses who don’t improve the productivity of their people have an exit rate that is nearly twice that of average-quality bosses. So being a great manager takes more than just knowing your stuff—you need to understand your people and their talent, too.

5. Remote employees are less engaged.

A lot of companies are afraid to establish flexible work from home policies because they believe remote employees are less engaged than employees at the office. But the data shows the opposite. Gallup’s State of the American Workplacereveals that employees who work remotely are actually slightly more engaged than those in the office. And, research by Stanford University found that productivity increased when employees were allowed to work from home. Productivity of remote employees rose 13%, and 9.5% of that increase was attributed to working more hours.

6. Do what you love and you’ll never work again.

You may never work if you follow your bliss, but you also won’t truly make a difference. Research shows that people who do great work don’t dwell on finding their own happiness, but rather focus on doing something others love. The Great Work Study analyzed 1.7 million cases of award-winning work. 88% of projects that are appreciated and rewarded began with an employee asking, “What difference could I make that other people would love?” That’s why groundbreaking work begins with thinking of others first.

We are researchers, consultants and authors inside the O.C. Tanner Institute, and we write about people who make a difference—what they think about, what they do, and how they achieve extraordinary results. David Sturt is executive vice president at the O.C. Tanner Institut...